Ecomaterials

The general objectives assumed by the Strategic Programme comprise the production of new knowledge in the Research Area of Competence of “Ecomaterials” (ECM), between others, contributing to the general vision of Sustainable Built Environment & Energy Efficiency, as well as of Sustainable and Resilient Systems and Infrastructures. ECM area will make research in the field of materials, mainly in its eco-efficiency. Their contributions to increase the quality of life in cities, without compromising the future generations, will be studied during all the phases of the life-cycle. Environmental, economic and social aspects need to be considered in order to fulfil the mentioned objectives.

Mainly, ECM area will develop research on “innovative ecomaterials & technologies” with connections to “energy efficiency & sustainable built environment” and “risk management and health”. The main projects to be developed are:

- New technologies for smart materials, involving the study of phase change, photocatalytic and self-healing materials The use of nanomaterials will be fundamental to increase the efficiency of the new technologies;

- Eco-efficient mortars and concretes, involving the study of high performance pozzolans that can replace part of Portland cement, a material with low sustainability. The resulting mortars and concretes will have advantages related with economy, energy efficiency, durability and environment;

- New composites for rehabilitation of constructions, involving the study of composites with incorporation of natural or artificial fibres for structural and non-structural applications. The durability of these composites will be an important aspect to be considered;

- Functional materials for lightweight construction, involving the study of polymeric membranes to be used mainly in lightweight covers. Their resistance to environmental conditions is fundamental to be analysed.

Main Equipments

The CompactRIO system (cRIO) is a DAQ system with an incorporated computer (with its own operating system) capable of dedicatedly running one single LabVIEW program at a time. The cRIO has standard memory and an integrated real-time processor for control, data logging, and analysis, and able to run the program at much higher speed than a laptop (which is multitasking). The cRIO uses Ethernet to connect to its peripherals which enables it to communicate data fast. The cRIO connects to the electronic hardware via reconfigurable I/O field-programmable gate array (FPGA) technology.

The Construction Materials Laboratory, created in July e, 2002, is a unit of scientific research and service delivery to the community, and belongs to the Department of Civil Engineering of University of Minho.

Construction Materials Laboratory covers destructive and non-destructive testing of construction materials such as fresh and hardened mortars and concrete and the assessment of their durability and mechanical properties. The equipment housed in Construction Materials Laboratory will allow the characterization, development and testing of high performance sustainable materials for a wide variety of applications in the construction industry.

The main objectives of Construction Materials Laboratory are as follows:

• Support pedagogically different teaching projects of the Department of Civil Engineering, namely the Integrated Master on Civil Engineering and postgraduate studies (International Master in Sustainable Built Environment and Doctoral Program in Civil Engineering) in the area of construction materials;

• Participate in scientific research projects in the areas defined in the CTAC strategic program, namely in that who are framed in the Ecomaterials thematic line.

• Develop activities of consultancy and service delivery to the community;

• Develop training course.

The Construction Materials Laboratory performs various tests in the following areas:

The Centre for Territory, Environment and Construction (CTAC) is a research unit of the School of Engineering of University of Minho (UMinho), recognised by the “FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia” (Foundation for Science and Technology), associated to the Department of Civil Engineering (DEC), with whom it shares resources and namely human resources.

Currently CTAC aggregates 37 researchers holding a PhD of which 27 are faculty professors of the Civil Engineering Department. Read more